The present invention pertains to a thin, lightweight, flexible, bright, wireless display. Further, the present invention pertains to a wireless display device capable of displaying information received from multiple sources.
Webtablets and notebook computers are known for providing mobile display of Internet content. However, such devices require expensive microprocessors to be effective for their intended purpose, require operating system and usually the purchase of a software license. To provide mobile network access, for connecting a network, such as the Internet or another computer, these devices utilize a wireless signal to communicate between the device and a modem. Such a system simply creates a wireless communication link between the onboard processor and storage of the mobile display and a modem hardwired to a wire phoneline, Ethernet or coaxial cable network. Even when wirelessly networked to a desktop computer or the Internet via a modem, these devices can only receive information from a single source at once, making them not useful for combined display activities such as simultaneous web browsing and TV watching. Such devices quickly become obsolete when the next generation of microprocessors become available or there is a software upgrade. The eyes will always be used to view images from a display and the ears will always be used to hear audio from a speaker, thus, if a wireless display device can be provided which is not dependent on an onboard computer processor for displaying images, a multimedia system that includes such a display will be upgraded when the signal source (computer, DVD, stereo system, now PVRs, video phones, etc) are upgraded.
Recently, there has been activity in developing thin, flexible displays that utilize pixels of electroluminescent materials, such as organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). Such displays do not require any back lighting since each pixel element generates its own light. Typically, the organic materials are deposited by spin-coating or evaporation. U.S. Pat. No. 6,395,328, issued to May, teaches an organic light emitting color display wherein a multi-color device is formed by depositing and patterning layers of light emissive material. U.S. Pat. No. 5,965,979, issued to Friend, et al., teaches a method of making a light emitting device by laminating two self-supporting components, at least one has a light emitting layer. U.S. Pat. No. 6,087,196, issued to Strum, et al., teaches a fabrication method for forming organic semiconductor devices using ink jet printing. U.S. Pat. No. 6,416,885 B1, issued to Towns et al., teaches an electroluminescent device wherein a conductive polymer layer between an organic light emitting layer and a charge-injecting layer resists lateral spreading of charge carriers to improve the display characteristics. U.S. Pat. No. 6,420,200, issued to Yamazaki et al., teaches a method of manufacturing an electro-optical device using a relief printing or screen printing method. U.S. Pat. No. 6,402,579 B1, issued to Pichler et al., teaches an organic light-emitting device in which a multilayer structure is formed by DC magnetron sputtering. U.S. Pat. No. 6,422,687, issued to Jacobson, teaches an electronically addressable microencapsulated ink and display.
The prior art shows that organic light-emitting pixels may be formed into a display using various manufacturing techniques. For example, the '196 patent shows that an OLED can be fabricated using an inkjet printer. The '687 patent shows that various electronic circuit elements may be formed from microencapsulated electronically active materials.
The teachings of the prior art indicate that it is possible to create a thin, lightweight, flexible, bright, display in which OLED pixels are formed using various methods including ink jet printing techniques. However, no prior art addresses the practical requirement of providing such a display with an incorporated user input mechanism. Further, no prior art recognizes the need to format and transmit content, such as HTML pages, so that it can be displayed without requiring substantial on-board data processing. Data processing components, such as microprocessors, consume power, are relatively expensive, difficult to manufacture and require complex electrical circuits. Thus, having a thin, bright, wireless display with substantial onboard processing severely limits the effectiveness of the display. Further, there is no prior art that provides such a display that is capable of receiving two or more display information signals simultaneously so that, for example, a television program can be viewed at the same time that a webpage is displayed. Accordingly, there is a need for a thin, lightweight, flexible, bright, wireless display which has an effective user input mechanism, is constructed to maximize the power density and efficient power consumption of an onboard battery, and which can be manufactured, at least in part, using printing methods.